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Aug 31, 2011

Yesterday I came across and new blog : LA VIE EN MODE + and today, Nimue [who is from Belgium] wrote an interesting post having to do with an article about makeup that she read in her latest ELLE UK mag.

Pic below taken from Nimue's blog

In Nimue's words : "I read a very disturbing article in it about how you should regularly replace your make-up, because otherwise it gets filled with bacteria! I daresay it kinda freaked me out."

This is true. I don't know if the article talked about some of the causes of bacteria...but after reading Nimue's post I thought I would piggyback off her and to this topic. Bacteria can start in dark places...and one of the most common areas that women hold their makeup is in makeup bags, where it is dark. I remember learning this quite some time ago but it never really bothering me. I actually have my "get-ready-items" displayed in a way that saves time when putting on makeup, and I know exactly what I have. So rather than describe this, I took a pic. :)

Some helpful tips for maintaining makeup and your tools:

Date your mascara, blush, shadows...you really don't want to keep shadows more than 2 years. This really depends on the frequency of use too.

Clean out your eye lash curlers! There is so much goopy build-up on those things.

Wash brushes with warm soapy water every couple weeks. NEVER use hot water..this will cause the bristles to fall out. After washing, tap the water out gently and then press more water out with a towel, lay down to dry.

Buy mascara every 3 months! Again, depending on usage..if it dries up before that...replace it!

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Yesterday evening, Jesse and I went and hung out with his brother and wife. Heather [my super funny sister-in-law] and I went to the craft store so she could see all the Halloween decorations. SHE LOOVES HALLOWEEN! After Michaels, we then bee-bopped our way over to the dollar store afterwards where they had thee cutest little crows. She bought me one! :-[) Thanks Heather! It goes perfect in our little dining room.

I also picked up the latest Teen Vogue. I LOVE that magazine and it's size....and Emma Stone. I didn't know that her natural hair color is blonde. But I love her in red...I think it makes her comedic humor even funnier for some reason. Anyways, in one of their spreads, this model is wearing THEE CUTEST HAT EVER!! This hat makes me want to become a milliner now... :[) I also love the hair & makeup on the model..she is darling!

I love Alexa Chung and her style. What she has been doing over at Madewell has been a success, which then has launched a second collection of her's coming from them soon. However, this new ad campaign video featuring Alexa Chung for Madewell kinda drives me nuts....no, it really drives me nuts. : / I am not a director, nor will I ever become one. But after seeing this video I thought to myself, I could make one 10x better than that!

I was hoping for something a little more creative and not so cliche-indie looking. I swear I have seen more than 10 fashion related videos this past year with at least one model reaching her arms out far and walking on rail of some sort and trying to balance, OR running through a field with the sun setting, gliding her fingers over hay or flowers, OR turning around in circles and looking over her shoulder. I love looking at beautiful clothes and beautiful people wearing beautiful clothes..but I am getting so tired of seeing these kinds of indie-esque fashion videos that either lack creativity and/or humor. Trying to convey how cool one is all the time actually becomes less cool to me. I get it, and I agree...I do think you Madewell [for example] are really cool, and I will continue to buy your clothes.... but what else? Am I alone here?

NOW, This new Lanvin Fall 2011 campaign is what I am talking about! I LOOOOVE the high fashion mixed with watching models dance awkward to a song that doesn't necessarily go with the overall aesthetic. The end is thee best part! I think I need to watch this again! BAH! :-[)

I guess the point I am trying to make here is this: I would rather be hanging out with the Lanvin models and dancing, than riding around in a volvo in Texas with Alexa Chung, going to the laundry mat in some remote town and eating gumballs.

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On another creative note: I love this images over at BHLDN. The clothes are obviously beautiful, but it is the placement of the model's hands that really grab my attention. The delicacy of them! It's also details like these that reveal a personality...which can be really endearing in situations like this.

Aug 29, 2011

I am sooo so excited to add these new items to my shop! Some of what you see is not up YET..but will be added today and tomorrow along with some stuffed animals AND new prints! I think these make THEE perfect wedding, baby, or birthday gift! Perfect for hanging on the wall in your entry way, above your baby's crib or in your child's room and great for the bathroom! Dishwasher safe, but better to hand wash in my opinion. :)

Aug 25, 2011

Okay. Stop the beards! Just kidding... Keep em coming! Husband Jesse is growing his out [about 2" long] for the autumn season *love* and even though I can't join in the beard growing fun...I can however wear some bearded men [who look a lot like Jesse] on my lobes! Awesome!

Aug 24, 2011

Okay. So this will for sure be THEE LONGEST POST I have ever done in the history of my Roxy Marj Blog! I didn't write the long letter below that you are about to read.. but I do have to say that I wish I was as good of a writer as this lady Megan Benton who wrote the letter [Jender, does she have a blog/website?] On Tuesday, I happened to come across this blog: Being Miss Jendar which instantly caught my attention. Most of you know that I am part of the LDS [Mormon] religion which I mention on here from time to time, AND that I recently got married [for the 2nd time] in the LDS Temple. My ex-husband however, was not Mormon and we did not get married in the Temple. So I have kind of been on both sides....[this info makes sense after you read the letter] I love what Megan has to say to her friend Jender [I copied the letter from Jender's blog, with permission] because of the points she makes about marriage and being Mormon. What I got from her letter was that it doesn't matter if you get married in or out of the Mormon temple but rather the kind of person you marry. There are just as many happy non-religious couples as there are religious couples. IT IS SOOO TRUE! Just because one is religious does not automatically mean you are better than someone who is not, AND being religious does not promise a happier life! I personally am religious and go to the LDS church because I believe it to be the best life learning institution for ME, and that will help me be a better person. Going to church every Sunday for a couple hours isn't always easy, and some weeks isn't always something I look forward to doing...just like when I was in College...BUT I kept going to my classes in college every week because #1 I was paying for it, but more importantly #2 I was learning how to be better at something. It would not makes sense to go my Digital Design class once a month or even once a year...If I did that, I would be learning the same thing I learned the first day over and over again. Does that make sense? Annnyways, enough of that.... Megan is way more eloquent with her thoughts on this subject.

Here is Jender pictured with friends, she is in the middle. Totally Darling if you ask me! :)

Megan's letter to Jender:

"To my dear friend Jendar and her other readers who are struggling with finding Mormon boys to date, and have realized they may be happy marrying a nonmber:

First, I'm going to refer you to a podcast I listen to called "The Round Table." Get it on itunes, and listen to the July episodes. It's a podcast that discusses LDS Womens issues, by women. And it's not put out by the Church, so people will talk straight and reveal what they really struggle with. They talk about improving our marriages and spiritual issues in marriage, and they hold an interview with a woman who married a nonmember. She is happy with her husband and her marriage. Also, I want you to check out the "Mormon Women Project" blog, because it gives spotlight profiles on women who are doing amazing things in the face of real challenges, or breaking molds in Mormonism. Also, I want you to google "Joanna Brooks Ask Mormon Girl" and "Feminist Mormon Housewives" and the "Exponent II." They are all rockstar resources for getting to know your other LDS sisters in a way you never realized you could.

Lastly, if everything I say in this blog doesn't resonate with you, then by all means keep dating members of the Church and get yourself some online dating memberships. You can meet people you wouldn't have otherwise met through your weekly Church activities. Lots of people in the LDS Church are shy about it. Don't be. Consider 1 in 5 relationships today start from meeting online. That's 20%, pretty significant.

Here are my thoughts about dating nonmembers. Keep in mind that I am undergoing a faith transition. In other words, my beliefs in religion are becoming less literal and historical and much more symbolic in nature. So I'm coming at this from a liberal Mormon perspective. I realize that not everyone is comfortable with that. I was not, even 2 years ago. That being said, I would love for our church to get less focused on why we are Mormon, and why that is so great and more focused on how to make our characters Christ-like. I want us to stop focusing on why we are the best church in the world, and instead talk about how we as Christians can become more loving people. How to use some of our creative energies for real social problems. I believe there's a lot of beautiful doctrine in our church, but if we just focus on things like why we are so great, then we are becoming like the Pharisees. There's a lot that other religions have to offer.

What does that have to do with marriage? Well, I feel like our discussions on marriage in church have a lot more with getting yourself to the temple so you can be righteous. I think it would be earlier to talk about how do I live with this other person from day to day and be happy? In the global church, not that many women are married to members of the Church.

In the church in America, we're all about getting to the temple, and getting there NOW. We hear about a couple that "just" got civilly married and we hear oh, what a tragedy. Um, hello? That's a WEDDING that just happened! Two people are in love and just publicly declared monogamy! That's a BIG DEAL!

When we focus on spiritual compatability from a purely ceremonial perspective then yes, we have problems. But what about what happens day in and day out of your marriage? It's not just a matter of, does this person keep the commandments? We as humans are so much more complex than that. Meaningful relationships and bonds take place between all kinds of people, not just the so-called "Righteous Mormons." Consider this: most marriages outside of the Church are mixed-faith. I don't know how faith problems factor into their relationships, but many people manage to stay together even though they come from different faith backgrounds. Sometimes it's a matter of one spouse coming to the other's church to make them happy. Others it's a matter of raising the kids in a certain tradition. The point is, lots of other people do it. And their families don't seem to be bemoaning their poor lost souls the way that many Mormon families do.

I think that the way that we talk about marriage preparation in the Church leaves a lot of room for spiritual coersion in marriage relationships. And I think that's wrong. Let me give you an example. I recently had dinner with some other women in my ward, and a woman who I hadn't known just opened up to us and said her husband didn't let her use birth control. She's been married maybe two years and is already expecting her second child. She loves her babies but she seemed stressed. She goes to school and it sounds like she's the primary caregiver of her babies, because her husband works and studies too. Plus he sounds pretty traditional. She approached the bishop about her problem with her husband about the birth control. But our bishop refused to talk to her husband. I think that is wrong, and shouldn't happen. This woman's husband has spiritual justification for his actions: being the breadwinner, the priesthood holder, and some really old-fashioned Church doctrine about birth-control to boot. Has this man been taught in priesthood about equal partnership in his marriage? Probably, but he is taking the spiritual doctrine that he likes. As does, I might add, everyone, whether you fall on the conservative or liberal side of interpretation. Even the general authorities have different approaches on topics, and represent a broad spectrum of opinion. Google the talk "Liahona Mormon" and you'll read about how two different prophets of our church had different opinions on evolution. So, in other words, in all marriages, whether it's between two hippy-dippies living in Berkley who do naked yoga on Sundays, or two conservative Ultra Orthodox Jews living in Queens, there are differences in how the partners experience and express their spirituality. You want a partner who respects your spiritual path and does not guilt you into doing things their own way. The late Sister Chieko Okazaki, who recently passed, was a Japanese-American living in Hawaii when she converted to the gospel at age 15. She married a nonmember, but was completely respectful of his spiritual path and did not force him to come with her. Later he joined the Church. She later served in the General Relief Society Presidency in the 90s. Even if her husband had not converted, Sis. Okazaki would have, I have no doubt, had a tremendous spiritual ministry and influence on people.

Here's another thing to consider: it's really hard to find priesthood holders to date because they are leaving the Church. It's because they're finding out things about Church history online that is really difficult to deal with. Or they're unhappy with the Church because it doesn't speak to them in some way or another. It's happening with women too, but at a slower pace. In any case, I'm just saying that many people are faced these days with a spouse who leaves the Church. Or maybe you have are faced with wanting to stay in the Church or not. There are other really faith-testing trials that people go through that break their marriages. Lots of LDS couples get divorced. A temple sealing is not a stamp of approval from God than exempts you from all trials and a fast-pass to the Celestial Kingdom. You will be faced with trials you never expected. But the love you have for your spouse can be a relief. When both spouses approach their trials in a compatible way and can keep respect for each other through it, that keeps them together. Check out "The 7 Principles That Make Marriage Work" by the Gottman Institute. I suggested it to my mother who is a Relief Society president currently, and she commented to me how many wives in her relief society are having marital trouble and publicly bash their husbands. Not exactly marital bliss.

Ultimately what I'm saying is, you should fall in love and enjoy your marriage. I enjoy being married. I love my husband. He is adorable and completely his own person. Mormonism has bonded us together in kind of an unexpected way: we look for the spiritual edification that speaks to us in ways that touch our hearts and try to shuff off the self-congratulatory or bullying dogma. It can be a challenge. I have to really pay attention that I'm putting my faith in the big things like Christ, the atonement, forgiveness, loving our neighbors. If we were to get caught up in what I call the surface things or even "certain personality things" of Mormonism like facial hair or caffeine or movie ratings, we would go crazy. We know what works for us and that's what matters.

People change in all kinds of ways: they change their hair, their weight, their careers, their hobbies, their health, even their faith. Hell, people can even change their genitals. Our beliefs are constantly evolving and being challenged. Do you experience your faith the way you did when you were a kid? Should we experience faith the same way we did when we were in Laurels? No, we are constantly developing. That makes me realize how human my Mormon belief system is. That makes me ask myself, am I a Mormon first or a human? I think I'm a human first. And so is your spouse, and so are the prophets.

Good luck Jendar, and to all your readers. I wish you the best. No matter what your marriage decisions are, I will celebrate with you."

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What do you think about that letter? Whether you are Mormon or not, I am so curious to hear your thoughts! One last thing before I forget.... Susan over at Freshly Picked just introduced me to Babble, heard of it? I was just browsing through some photos and came across this picture of Abby's kitchen wall covered in bundt pans!!! OH MY INSPIRING! When Jesse and I move into a house someday, I just gotta do this in our kitchen!

Aug 23, 2011

I love this quote by Robert McCloskey. I also love all his books he has ever written and/or illustrated. As a child growing up, his books were always among my favorites and still are to this day. I hope some day to be a mini version of him, as well as Wanda Gag, Marjorie Flack, Doris Burn, Tove Jansson, and Elsa Beskow...just to name a few, especially if you don't know these illustrators/authors. You really should get to know them!

Aug 22, 2011

I feel spoiled right now with getting to wake up every morning and working side by side next to my husband. I know this set up won't last long with Jess working from home, he is looking to find a job in an actual office setting. Poor guy gets stir crazy and desperately misses employee face to face contact. Until that happens, I am milking my time with him for all it's worth. One of the joys of working from home....you can take a break whenever you want. Last week Jesse asked if I wanted to go fly-fishing around Heber. HECK YEAH MAN! So we worked our booties off till 3 pm, packed a quick picnic dinner and cruised to the river. It was a lot of fun...but we did get ourselves attacked by mosquitos. 27 bites [for me] in less than 2 min.!!! : / We also drove around Midway, which is right next to Heber. OH MY GOSH! That little town is theee cutest ever and my new favorite dream place to hopefully move to someday. I don't have pictures to share [this time] because I was in awe at everything we drove by that I forgot to take any. But if you live in Utah or are visiting this area next weekend. Midway is having their Swiss days event. Sept. 1-4 I can't wait to go.

One of my side "to do" projects that I finished last week was to go through my earrings, get rid of all the ones I hardly wear and display them in a way that is simple, easy, and noticeable when getting ready in the morning. As opposed to keeping them in my little blue container pictured.

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I went to the thrift store and got a vintage double frame for $1.00 ~ Spray - painted it black, took out the glass and then covered the cardboard inserts with some hand painted plaid paper that I rubber cemented on. *Fun Fact* When using rubber cement, cover both items with the glue and then let dry. Put the two items together and smooth with hand. This is the best way to rubber cement. ~ With a thumb tack, create holes...evenly spaced holes look a lot cleaner. I love this idea of using a folding frame because next time I travel I can easily fold it up, slip it into a cover [which still needs to be made] and you're good to go.

* I also found two clear glass rectangle dishes [75 cents each] and spray-painted the bottoms black to make my jewelry stand out more. I love how they look and the gold lines around the top that came on the dishes make a great accent.

Last night Jesse and I painted till 1 am. A favorite thing to do with him. Even though we were both doing our thing [our desks are back to back which means we get to play footsies a lot] it's always fun to be working on a project with someone else in the room who is also working on a project...even if it is quite. Brings such a nice feeling of peace. :) This was one of my little paintings I did. I haven't come up with a name for this little lady yet but I am already in love with her. :))

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Then this afternoon I made a new yummy sandwich for lunch that I just have to share! Toast a bagel. spread with whipped cream cheese, sprinkle cumin, toss on some cilantro, cover with slices of cucumber, sprinkle the pepper and then drop on a few thin sliver slices of some smoked gouda!!! Oh my yum yum! :)

Aug 17, 2011

Aug 12, 2011

Little by little, I am building my portfolio of designs over at Minted. Like what you see? Well I am available for hire. Do you need buisness cards, a letterhead or wanna make your resume stand out? I can do this and so much more. However, I do have a unique aesthetic which constantly channels styles from the 1930's to the 40's.... this doesn't keep me from adapting your style but it is easier if we are kinda on the same wave length. i.e. if your into dungeons and dragons and that sort of thing..... yeah, I may not be your best choice. : /

I cannot believe the riots that have recently happened in England. Watching the videos has me in total bewilderment. Seeing so many youth & young adults causing havoc and destruction is sad...just as much as seeing onlookers stand around and do nothing. It's soooo chilling. I honestly cannot imagine myself just standing around and not doing anything at all! It's probably good I live in a pretty peaceful place, because I am the type of person who would try and stop things from happening with the risk in mind that someone could hit me over the head with a baseball bat.... : /

Here is an interesting article I just read over at GOOD about the rioters, which also gives much of the full story as to why these riots began.

Aug 10, 2011

Gonna go shorter & DARKER with my hair here pretty soon. Ya know, just gittin roodeeeh [i.e. ready] for fall and all! :) I like Britta Persson's hair SO MUCH... but sadly, my hair wouldn't ever lay so nicely down like hers........my hair is like horse hair. It is still to this day best friends with old haggedy lady coursness...so when I do go short, I gots to get me some of that hair gel that all of those guido's in New Jersey keep raving about. And NO! I won't be spiking it up towards the sky.....get your mind outta the gutter ya weirdo!

p.s. and...just like Britta, I too want to meet a bear...before I die.

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Over at Uncommon Goods there is a little contest going on. If you're an accessories designer.... you may wann a check it out. Deadline for entries is Aug. 31 2011. And while you're over there...check out these darling sterling silver diamond stud earrings. I would honestly prefer these [but in gold or brass] over real diamonds.

Aug 8, 2011

Working on a fall/winter mood board today for my darling online friend Vivi. We are doing a handmade clothing trade and we thought the very best way to make sure each of us is happy with one another's product, was to make a mood board for the other. While looking for some online "tares" I came across this Fred Perry video via Selectism, a favorite men's blog of mine. I love how creative and simplistic this video is.

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Did you have a great weekend? Me and Jess's was fun and very productive! Due to our computer crash of 2011 and Jesse having to catch up on work I was sentenced to 3 days in my 5'x5' office space! :-[) It was a lot of fun though and I finally got my little office chair re-upholstered.... re-purposing , re-upholstering, re-finishing furniture is such a satisfying thing to do. Especially if you are able to do it yourself. It usually takes some major patience and lots of mini breaks. Otherwise, the chances of you wanting to pull your hair is very high.

Before: After:

And then with the leftover linen I had, I added it to the little stuffed owl I made for a friend's baby shower gift. It has been awhile since I have made stuffed animals. I am excited to tell you that a new bundle of softies will be added to my etsy shop a long with items for the home at the end of the week.

Aug 5, 2011

So on Monday our computer crashed.... total bummer. But we finally got our new one yesterday which then Jesse got right to building. So this morning is my first time using it and it is sooooooooooooo much faster! BAH! I love it! Our work spaces got a complete makeover as well this week since we had a ton of time to kill with both of us not being able to do our usual graphic design and illustration. I'll admit though, it has actually been nice not being able to get on the computer and check my mail, read the news, etc. But I missed my blog, even though I keep a physical journal having a virtual one is such a neat thing! Think about it, what if our physical journals all had a button to push once one was done writing. *Push* and now anyone in the world who wants to can read it. It's such a fantastic thing to have a blog.

Anyways...enough of the cheese. I am so behind on blogging but more importantly, totally behind on round 2 of my thoughts on how to meet that right one. Stay tuned! But husband Jay B. [taken after Beyonce's shout out to Jay Z from the music awards last month] has to get to work now on the computer. Till later my friends.

And...a little cottage I drew in illustrator & photoshop just now that is copied from one of my cottage paintings I did two summers ago.... I recently pulled them out of my files to get re-inspired. :)

About Me

Welcome to my little nook...away from it all! I use to blog a ton, then instagram took over my life and business...but i'm back and ready to ramble. ;-p A bit about me: I received my B.F.A in Fashion from Parsons School of Design 2009, NYC - currently living in one of the Mt. Hood villages in Oregon. Questions about licensing/illustrating? ......email me at roxy@roxymarj.com